New Digital 4 rack temp issues.....

[tparsons]

Hello All-

I just purchased a digital 4 rack system. I've only used it 3 times now. I tried pre heating the smoker before doing a couple chickens and the internal temp would only get to 245 F

I know there can be other factors which can unfluence the internal temp:
-External temp approx 80 F
-2 chickens inside both were are ROOM TEMP before they were put into the smoker
-No wind

Any thoughts or ideas would be much appreciated !!

Todd

[beefmann]

if the smoker is empty and in the  shade , This could keep the Temperatures down, if the vent is wide open allowing a  lot of air flow also will keep the temps down ( you  do want it  open ) Also if you  have a  full water bowl the heater is trying to get the water hot as well keeping lower temps...

if the chickens are in .. the meat load of the chickens will lower the temps...

if you are running your  smoker on an long cord or on a circuit with another  load on  it .. you  may be  experiencing some voltage drop  to the heater  causing it not to be as hot and getting your  box temp where you  want it ...

just a few things to check out 

[tskeeter]

t, have you been able to get your 4 rack above 245 before?  I know that the literature implies that it'll get up to 280.   But if I'm not mistaken, that's where the high temp cut out activates.  I think that many people find that their smokers will operate somewhere around 250.

Some things that will affect your cabinet temp.  A puck bowl full of cool water.  Water is a very effective heat sink.  It can absorb a lot of Btu's.  So adding moisture to the inside of the cabinet tends to limit the temps that you can reach.  (Many folks see this happen when they smoke products that contain a lot of moisture, such as chicken with the skin on.)  Allowing the moisture to vent by keeping the vent mostly open is key.  The vent position.  A wide open vent allows heat to escape.  But a closed vent allows moisture to build up in the cabinet and absorb a lot of heat.  You're trying to find a happy medium.  Wind.  You addressed that issue, so you understand how wind affects your smoker.

A technique that some folks use to help raise cabinet temps is to use the puck burner to augment the stock heating element.  Your stock heating element is 500 watts.  The puck burner is 125 watts.  So operating your puck burner while you are preheating your smoker will give you 25% more heating capacity.  Some folks also run their puck burner after they have completed the smoking phase of their smoke to improve heat recovery after they open the door or to add heating capacity if they are cooking large cuts of meat.       

[tparsons]

I've never been able to get it above 245F I guess I should also put hot water in the bowl. I need to check the power supply as well, since I am using a 25' extension cord.

Thanks for the tips !!

Todd

[tskeeter]

I don't think that a 245F cabinet temp is too bad (I usually cook at about 225F).  But, if that's not hot enough to suit you here are some additional thoughts.

I run my smoker using a 12 gauge extension cord to minimize the electrical resistance.  Probably overkill, considering that it's on a standard 14 gauge, 15 amp household circuit (kitchen and bath circuits in newer homes are often 20 amps with 12 gauge wire).  But the outlet is about 70 feet from the breaker, the smoker is 25 feet down stream from the outlet, and my mods have the smoker pulling about 10 amps.  Plus, I'm kind of a bigger is better kind of guy.

Another thing to consider is what else is on the circuit that you are using.  A heavy draw somewhere else in the house could be limiting the amount of power available for your smoker.  Assuming that you're running a stock 4 rack, it would draw about 5.2 - 5.7 amps, depending on your voltage.  If you've also got a garage refrigerator and a couple of other items on that circuit, you might be pushing it.  Remember that the operating capacity of a 15 amp circuit is only 12 amps (even though start up loads may be higher for short periods of time).

[seb bot]

Another thing to consider is that the sensor on the Bradley may also be a little off. I finally got around to trying my Maverick thermometer last weekend and it consistently showed about 12-15 degrees above what the Bradley did. (Which I was actually kind of happy to see , as I often worry it's not getting quite hot enough.)

When I do whole chickens I preheat for quite a while, with the puck burner on for a good part of that to help it get up to temp. Sometimes I will close the vent most of the way while pre-heating, then open it all the way once the meat goes in. I've seen temps hotter than 245 on the display, but never once it's actually got the chicken in! ( I set the oven to 280 to pre-heat, usually hope for at least 260something before I put the meat in, then set back to 250 for cook)

As other have mentioned, putting hot water in the bowl helps, as does making sure to use a good extension cord, and not having anything else on the same outlet. Also, try to keep your smoker out of the wind, it really seems to suck the heat out of it. I made a little chimney for mine out of plywood scraps and duct tape, it's a little sad but it works! ;D

[KyNola]

I think it is worth mentioning that the Bradley smoker is not an oven nor grill nor was it designed to be.  It is heated by the equivalent of 5 100 watt incandescent lightbulbs (which you can't purchase in the US any longer).  Typically, smoking meats occurs at a temp of 250 or less.

If your Bradley hits 245, you're good to go on 99% of all of your smoking needs.  If you want to go higher than that, fire up your grill.